HGTV’s Nicole Curtis tried to explain her use of a racist slur by revealing the words she actually intended to say.
Curtis, 49, appeared on the Tuesday, March 10, episode of “The Breakfast Club” to address the resurfaced video of her using a slur while filming Rehab Addict by saying she often used the terms “fart digger” and “fart knocker.”
“Do you have boys? Boys talk about farts all the time,” Curtis asked hosts DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious and Charlamagne Tha God. “OK, again, I can’t swear on my show. OK, so yes, I’ve made up these crazy words.”
Charlamagne Tha God, 47, questioned Curtis’ excuse. “Fart digger sounds like you’re playing with assholes all day. Why? That’s another conversation. Why would you be digging in random asses, digging for farts?”
In response, Curtis replied, “I don’t have a rhyme or reason of the words that I make up. I say nonsense stuff all the time.” She later mentioned that she and her family “live in Detroit,” which made Charlamagne Tha God fire back.
“So your best friends are Black and you live in the hood. What are you trying to prove here when you keep saying you’re from Detroit,” he asked. “I’m trying to figure out what you are trying to say.”
Curtis stood by her justification that she doesn’t use any slurs in her daily vocabulary, adding, “I came here to have an open conversation and I didn’t have to.”
Curtis hosted Rehab Addict, which premiered on the DIY Network in 2010 before moving to HGTV four years later. Season 9 initially aired two episodes in June 2025 before it was abruptly put on pause.
The hiatus came amid scheduling changes at the network, with five shows — Battle on the Beach, Farmhouse Fixer, Married to Real Estate, Bargain Block and Izzy Does It — being canceled.
“I made the executive decision to shelf the rest of our new shows until fall. I appreciate your support and understanding for the late notice,” Curtis wrote via Instagram at the time. “It’s just a lot of hours (my hours) to get a show on air and we (my family + me) thought – why are we giving up summer when we have the ability to do this in the fall?”
Rehab Addict was expected to return in February, but the same day new episodes were slated to be released, RadarOnline published footage of Curtis using the n-word while completing a renovation project for the series.
HGTV subsequently confirmed that the show would no longer be airing.
“HGTV was recently made aware of an offensive racial comment made during the filming of Rehab Addict. Not only is language like this hurtful and disappointing to our viewers, partners and employees — it does not align with the values of HGTV,” the network told Us Weekly in a statement. “Accordingly, we have removed the series from all HGTV platforms. We remain dedicated to fostering a culture of respect and inclusion across our content and our workplace.”
Curtis, meanwhile, addressed the situation via her Instagram Story. “There is more to this, but my family comes first and I need to be mom right now more than anything else,” she wrote. “I will take the time to be as I’ve always been with you, transparent and honest. TMZ called me as I had just turned my phone on after being at school – I said this briefly – but there is more …”
Warner Bros. Discovery ultimately pulled the rest of the planned new episodes off HGTV’s schedule and removed past episodes from HBO Max and Discovery+.
